Josh Gad and Andrew Rannells, who first shared a stage in The Book of Mormon, will return to Broadway together this fall in Gutenberg! The Musical!, the Scott Brown-Anthony King musical to be directed by Alex Timbers.
The production, announced today, will begin previews Friday, September 15 at Broadway’s James Earl Jones Theatre, with an official opening on Thursday, October 12. The strictly limited 20-week engagement will play through Sunday, January 28, 2024.
“It’s been 12 years since I’ve been on a Broadway stage,” Gad said in a statement. “And after 12 years, the only person who would agree to take the stage with me again was my co-star from 12 years ago. I am grateful that Andrew Rannells said yes, because I really didn’t have the energy to do a one-man show.”
Said Rannells, “After years of relentless stalking and countless restraining orders, Josh Gad has finally gotten me to agree to share the stage with him again. I decided it was best to just give in and honestly, it feels right to be reunited with my onstage missionary companion. Also, it was clear he would not leave me alone until I said yes.”
Described as “a full-throated celebration of the ancient, universal, and incredibly foolish urge to put on a show,” Gutenberg! The Musical! was originally developed at New York’s Upright Citizen’s Brigade Theatre and was also a part of the New York Musical Theatre Festival in 2005 and 2006 before having an acclaimed Off Broadway run, directed by Timbers, in 2006. Productions have been staged across the North America, as well as UK, Australia, France, Spain, and Korea.
The design team will include Tony Award winner Scott Pask (scenic design), Tony nominee Emily Rebholz (costume design), Tony winner Jeff Croiter (lighting design), and Cody Spencer & M.L. Dogg (sound design).
Gutenberg! The Musical! is produced on Broadway by Ambassador Theatre Group Productions, Patrick Catullo, Bad Robot Live, Seth A. Goldstein, Isaac Robert Hurwitz, Kristin Caskey and Mike Isaacson.
Alex Timbers said, “Josh and Andrew are two of the funniest and most inventive musical theater stars working today. We’ve been discussing collaborating for several years and the chance to do it on Gutenberg! is a true thrill, as it’s a one-of-a-kind showcase for their virtuosity, wild irreverence, and cheeky wit. I can’t wait for Broadway to see these two dynamos frantically switch between dozens and dozens of comic roles in this breathtaking tour de force written by my hilarious Beetlejuice collaborators Scott Brown and Anthony King.”
Scott Brown and Anthony King said, “We always said there’s no way we’d do our show about two dreamers hoping to go to Broadway ON Broadway unless Josh Gad, Andrew Rannells, and Alex Timbers did it with us. And dammit, they called our bluff. And we couldn’t be more thrilled. That our warped little valentine to musical theater will have the chance to reach a Broadway audience – it means the world to us.”
